City Councilors will debate whether to approve an expenditure of $5 million of opioid settlement dollars. According to the request, there is a lack of transitional recovery housing facilities in Albuquerque and these funds will allow Family and Community Services to coordinate the acquisition, renovation, or expansion of transitional recovery housing facilities. In other city […]
Housing & Homelessness
Posted inAlbuquerque, Housing & Homelessness
New $12.8M site opens for families experiencing homelessness
An Albuquerque nonprofit using an uncommon model that provides two years of housing, education and support to families experiencing homelessness has expanded to the Westside. Saranam’s objective is to stabilize and make independent what are most often single mothers with children who have endured domestic violence and other trauma. The program helps narrow a gap […]
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Deaths at the Westside shelter are increasing
On Jan. 28, 2023, a 53-year-old woman was staying at the Westside Emergency Housing Center with her husband when she died. According to an incident report, Gina Kirwin’s husband told staff that she was not breathing and when they went to check on her she was already cold to the touch. Kirwin’s husband told police […]
Posted inAlbuquerque, Housing & Homelessness
How many homeless die in Albuquerque each year? It’s complicated.
Although it’s hard to get an exact count, advocates say more people experiencing homelessness are dying each year. Neil Greene, a fellow at the University of New Mexico’s Center on Alcohol, Substance Use, and Addictions and a scholar of homelessness, researched the issue for City Desk ABQ — using Office of the Medical Investigator records […]
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City hunts for Westside shelter operator
The city is searching for someone to take on a complex assignment: staff and operate the Westside Emergency Housing Center (WEHC) for hundreds of people experiencing homelessness. The facility is located about 20 miles west of Downtown near the Double Eagle II Airport. Its remote location is typically accessed through shuttle services departing from pickup […]
Posted inAlbuquerque, Courts, Justice & Safety, Housing & Homelessness
Suspect arrested in deadly fight outside homeless services provider
Albuquerque police have arrested a man suspected of severely beating another man during a fight in front of a homeless services provider Downtown in late February. The victim, Mark Lavine, died a couple weeks later. Jose Gracia, 54, was arrested Wednesday. He is charged with an open count of murder. Both he and Lavine were […]
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Younger and stronger: Addicted teens as young as 11 are getting turned away but more help is coming
Youth experiencing addiction will soon have a safe place to detox in Albuquerque. The new detox center has space to house six clients, who can stay there for up to 14 days, or longer if medically necessary. In February, Serenity Mesa, a transitional living service for youth in Bernalillo County, received $3.5 million in funding […]
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Gateway sobering center gets $4.2M from feds
The Gateway Center is moving toward its goal of offering medical sobering services in Albuquerque. The site near the VA Medical Center hosted U.S. Senator Ben Ray Luján and U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra highlighted the $4.2 million in federal aid appropriated for the project. Luján, Becerra and Mayor Tim Keller toured […]
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No-Confidence vote goes nowhere, again
The City Council also heard from the Albuquerque Police Department about its findings in the investigation into Chief Harold Medina’s crash. Read our coverage of that discussion here. It was a no vote for a vote of no confidence leveled against the Albuquerque Police Chief at Wednesday’s City Council meeting. Councilor Louie Sanchez sponsored the […]
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WHAT TO EXPECT: No confidence vote in police chief on the table
A no-confidence vote in the police chief will be on the table for the Albuquerque City Council at its Wednesday regular meeting. Strike Out or Home Run Councilor Louie Sanchez has failed a couple of times to get a message of no confidence off the council table and onto the mayor’s office. The city’s Finance […]